In its fifth edition in 2017, the twelve-day celebration of the visual arts takes place from 11 to 22 January, in venues across Singapore, from galleries and museums to art precincts and non-profit spaces, including three art fairs Art Stage Singapore, Singapore Contemporary, and Art Apart.
Here are 10 events – off the beaten track – coinciding with Singapore Art Week.
1. Cities for People
NTU CCA Ideas Fest 2016/17
13 – 22 Jan, NTU CCA Singapore
CITIES FOR PEOPLE is the pilot edition of NTU CCA Ideas Fest, an annual platform to catalyse critical exchange of ideas and encourage thinking “out of the box”. It is a bottom-up approach linking the artistic and academic communities with grassroots initiatives. This pilot edition expands artistic interventions and engages contemporary issues such as air, water, food, environment, and social interaction, in connection to artistic and cultural fields, academic research, and design applications. Read more
2. Ruben Pang: A Totem For Your Genuine Internals
10 Jan – 9 Feb, Chan Hampe Galleries
A Totem for Your Genuine Internals is a result of the galleries’ carte blanche invitation for Ruben to step out of art studio conventions and respond to the site, a former shop lot. Read more
3. 1 Dies, 1000 Grow
11 – 24 Jan, Your MOTHER Gallery
Your MOTHER Gallery – one of the few remaining alternative art venues in Singapore – will be closing in a few months. Originated in the kitchen of the residence of artists Jeremy Hiah and Lina Adam, Your MOTHER Gallery was established on 31st Dec 2004 with a mission to provide an alternative and affordable art space. Subsequently, the gallery moved into the main hall of the flat. In the 12 years of its existence, Your MOTHER Gallery has hosted exhibitions by a slew of artists (emerging and established).
This exhibition at Your MOTHER Gallery will present woodcut works by Jeremy Hiah. Read more
4. Rehearsal
20 – 22 Jan, NTU CCA Singapore
Taking the form of a campsite, Rehearsal is an invitation to the public to live together for 3 days/2 nights. It is a social experiment stemming from the urge to incite and foster public discussions in Singapore, addressing the city and how to organise collectively. Spaces for different groups to come together are lacking and only few opportunities exist for civil society groups and government sectors to meet and have open debates. Responding directly to the need for places that facilitate discussions and gatherings, Post-Museum‘s first Rehearsal, which took place at The Substation, invited people to spend time together and do something collectively over a 24-hour period. Read more
5. Dialogue – A VSA Art Exhibition
17 – 23 Jan, Visual Arts Centre
With an ambition to build a culture of inclusion for artists with disabilities in the art world, Dialogue is a curated art exhibition organised by Very Special Arts Singapore to eliminate the misconception that artists with disabilities are not able to produce “fine” art. Read more
6. Odyssey: Picturing and Imagining the Okavango Delta
13 Jan – 5 Feb, Leica Gallery
Odyssey: Picturing and Imagining the Okavango Delta is an exhibition by Singaporean photographer Alwyn Chong.
His images are the result of a two-week expedition in the delta, a UNESCO World Heritage site in northwest Botswana characterized by permanent marshlands and seasonally flooded plains.
Read more
7. Welcome to BIRDHEAD World Again
Till 22 Jan, ShanghART Gallery
This inaugural solo show in Singapore by acclaimed photography duo Birdhead, Song Tao and Ji Weiyu, features new works that draw inspiration from the landscapes, places and people encountered during their travels in Thailand, Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam and Singapore. Marking the first time that the duo has turned their lenses towards Southeast Asia, their works serve as the document of an interior journey as well as as an exploration of self. Read more
8. 2017 Singapore Art Week Auction: Modern and Contemporary Art
21 Jan, Grand Hyatt Singapore
33 Auction will be holding a Modern and Contemporary Asian Art Auction on Saturday, 21st January 2017, at Grand Hyatt Singapore. The public preview is to be held at MoCA@Loewen on 19th, 20th and 21st January.
There will be a total of 85 lots with estimated value at SGD 1.8–2.2 million. A special section will be dedicated to Singaporean Artists, the other works will be popular Modern and Contemporary Art from other Asian countries. Read more
9. Fantasy Islands
11 – 26 Jan, Objectifs
This inter-disciplinary curatorial project curated by Chui Yongjian and Mitha Budhyarto is the first of its kind that specifically investigates the cultural and social connections between Batam and Singapore. Read more
10. Shi Yanliang
11 – 22 Jan, Asian Art Platform
The artist is most famous for his straightforward, flat and vibrant paintings. The paintings of Shi Yanliang tell stories, he uses intensive colours and clean precise lines to depict overwhelming and deep emotions. Read more
